Why did you buy a BMW bike?

[Acadian Rider]

This year I bought a new BMW K1300GT and so far so good.  Why did I buy a BMW?  

When I was a young teenager admiring bikes that passed through town I always admired BMW's more than anything else.  Compared to bikes of the time they were soooooo smooooooooth, big, powerfull and the people riding them all seemed to be going to far off places with them.  

When I got a little bit older (mid to late teens) the Japanese bikes took over and they were everywhere ..... but still, those BMW bikes were still cool.  

When I finally started buying bikes after university, I entered the market on a Can-Am 250 to keep the payments down.  Borrowed some money from my dad and paid him back at the rate of $100.00 per month.  My mother who is a professional worrier must have been impressed.    

Another bike came and when the kids came, no more bikes.  

Twenty years later (2001) when I entered the market again I went with Honda as they had a reputation for being reliable and there were plenty of dealers everywhere.    Owning a new BMW would have meant too much money.

This year I decided to take the plunge.  Two or three years ago BMW Canada reduced their prices here in Canada to  more affordable prices and there is a dealer in my backyard. They are a fairly new one but they must be at a point now where they are getting more comfortable with the BMW brand.  I would definitely noy buy a BMW without a dealer close by.  This combined with the fact that with the new bike came a three year unlimited km warranty helped me with my decision.    

For me it was a toss up between the K1300 GT and the R1200RT.  I wanted a comfortable big sport-tourer and I am not a fan of first year bikes.  This year was the 2nd year for the K1300 GST but the first year for the boxer's new head.  This combined with the fact that Susan felt more comfortable on the K bike and that the K1300 GT came out on top in all the articles I read when comparing big sport-tourers helped sealed the decision.  

So far the only issue I've had with the bike is that the gel battery acts up when it get too hot sitting on top og the engine.  Hopefully I'll never get stranded anywhere but with roadside assistance from BMW for another two years it makes me feel a little bit better.  

So,  why did you buy a BMW?  

[BobW]

 

the fact that Susan felt more comfortable on the K bike

Pretty much sums up why I buy any bike. For two up, SWMBO makes the only vote that counts and for my solo choices, including BMW, it is all about the smile factor while riding. There are no real "bad" bikes today and if a guy/gal enjoys riding their XYZ, I'm happy for them. I've owned so many brands over the years and they all can have issues, but mainly, they all offered some great memories.

Glad your back in the fold "full time" and that your able to ride your "dream" bike. Life is good!

Cheers

[Max Wedge]

Mainly because the Super-Tenere was not coming to the US (so Yamaha said) and they were the only game in in town when you are looking for a dreadnaught class enduro. Well, that is not entirely true, there is the Stelvio, but the dealer network is a little lacking for me for a primary bike. No regrets-my favorite bike I have owned so far.

We will see what happens when the 3-year warantee is up....

[DangerMoney]

Owned Hondas for 14 years, then got out of bikes altogether. When I decided to get back in I knew what I wanted (big ST) but couldn't find it anywhere. Looked at Honda and found the ST1300 boring looking, VFR too sport-bike.

Then looked at all the other Japanese ST bikes. The FJR could only be ordered at that time. No one stocked them. The fact I couldn't see one in person, let alone ride it, put a damper on it. Then I read about how the bike roasts the rider: Deal killer.

My wife said,"Doesn't BMW make motorcycles?" "Yes". Called Iron Horse BMW in Tucson, AZ and within five minutes of asking me some questions they told me I can test ride any bike they have if I have a M/C license and wear proper gear. I rode two bikes at the dealership  and pretty much narrowed it down to two models: K1200RS and K1200GT. They said they had a used RS coming in on trade in a few weeks can would call me when it arrived which they did. Went back down, rode the used one and a new one, bought the new one (K1200RS).  No regrets and very happy with the bike.

[ST1300Rider]

  

Pretty much sums up why I buy any bike. For two up, SWMBO makes the only vote that counts.
Cheers

So true. After 10s of K miles two up on my dialed in ST1300 Honda we toured Spain and France a few years ago on a rented 1200RT. We both hated it. This spring we toured Italy on a rented 1200 GS..... I now own one. The wife loved it. The ST1300 is still my dedicated 2 up long haul mount mainly due to the weather protection but the GS has become the day to day and weekend getaway choice. For grins I've still got the Scrambler.

[Bain Dramage]

1. Comfort for day-long, multi-day riding. (When I complete my trip this May I will have ridden every one of the contiguous 48 states.)

2. Great commuter (I ride 80 miles, round-trip each day that I ride to work).

3. Related to 1 & 2 it handles very well (a JOY to ride) on everything from 2-lane country roads to scenic mountain twisties to super-slab interstate highways.

4. Great range - I average 47 MPG commuting (and get over 300 miles to a tank - unless I'm cruising in excess of 80 MPH).

5. Has almost all the farkles right out of the box (I added only custom seat, tank bag, GPS & Camera mounts).

The are lots of great bikes out there, but for me - my riding preferences considered - the BMW R 1200 RT was the best choice.

If I could afford to own multiple bikes, as least one of them would be a BMW.

[miles]

They made the bike I wanted.  If that same bike had been anybody else I would have bought it just as quickly (well, OK, not Suzuki, but any other brand than that).

[stevent]

I saw an K100 RS in 1984 from Canada, when they came out here in '85 I went and bought one and loved it. My dad retired from riding because of health issues in 1990 and gave me his '79 R100RT, I rode both of them until I sold and traded them for a 1000 Ninja, then a few other Japanese sport bikes, another BMW R1150RT, and few Triumphs and Harley's. When I bought my last bike, an '08 FLHT I had narrowed my choice down to a K1300GT, the Harley or a Concours 1400. I chose the Harley because it was most suited at the time, it was an excellent bike but I got the Jones for a more performance oriented bike, so I went to check on a new K1300GT. I really liked it but the GS just kept drawing my eye. I raced Motocross and Enduros with my dad all through my teens and riding the GS was like being back on a dirty bike sooooo.........

That's how I ended up on a BMW again, and having a ball with it!  

[Jetpilot5]

I always thought they just built weird, expensive motorcycles.  I test rode a K1200RS brick when I still had my VFR and was looking for a bike with more power.  Nice, but really heavy and didn't feel much faster than my VFR so I went with a CBR1100XX.  Finally, though I loved the engine, the tight ergos on the XX had me shopping again.  I had read about the new K1200S but never really considered it due to price.

Took a 60 mile ride over to my nearest dealer one day just to get out and look around and had the chance to finally check the bike out in person.  It fit like a glove, felt just like my VFR.  My dealer didn't have one in stock that I could test ride so I rode four hours to another dealer that had a demo until and took a ride.  I was sold on the bike but couldn't get past the price.  It took a year of looking and finally taking my wife over to see the bike to finally get it bought.  Once she saw how enthusiastic I was about the bike in person she said to go ahead and get it.  Who am I to argue.

I've put more miles on my BMW than any other bike I've ever owned.  My local dealer closed last February so I've limped along using dealers that are much farther away but a new dealer opens in the same town as my original dealer this coming March.  I also spend more time worrying about a major failure with this bike than any other I've ever owned, especially now that it's well out of warranty but so far, mine has been good.  I can say when these bikes work like they are supposed to, they are fantastic.

I keep looking at new bikes (the new Ninja 1000 has my attention) but so far I keep coming back to BMW.  The K1300S in blue is just .

Good to hear you're enjoying the new GT.

[Oilhed]

I bought my airheads and oilhed because of comfort and legendary reliability.  There were also very affordable.  I got my Ducati as a guilty pleasure and it was cheaper than a new BMW!

[The Shepherd]

I bought my K1200S a few years after taking a test ride on one. It was the bike that had it all, "the ONE". Brakes, suspension, handling, power and ergos in a beautiful package. BMW's feel engineered to me, like they are a tight package. Of the Japanese brands, Honda comes the closest to that level of refinement.

It is bone stock as it came perfect out of the dealership. I've toured on it, took it to the track and commuted and couldn't ask for a better bike. I love it.

 

[lightcycle]

I got my GS because I have a huge man-crush on Charley Boorman...

Oh, also I needed something bulletproof that I could ride around the world with. So far, it hasn't let me down yet!


Which would you choose: Short way round? Or Long way round...? (not photoshopped, BTW)

[RBEmerson]

 

[sagerat]

I like the way a boxer twin handles.  This is my third Beemer ('75 R90/6, '04 GS) and of course the Ural has a boxer engine (call it a Russian BMW if you want the true roundel faithful to flinch).

GS has a nice upright riding position, stock seat semi-sucks, headlights are marginal, but really those are the only quibbles.  

Plus I like to meet old guys and old women and my fellow graybeards flock to Beemers.  What do you call a hot 30-year-old woman at BMW rally?  An anomaly.  

[Attack Pug]

My K1300GT is my first BMW also. I doubt it will be my last. I love all the farkles cruise esa est. with the power to make it go like stink.
It just fits me

[Andrew]

Bought my first GS to turn a profit (non running) made the mistake of riding it

Bought the second a GSA because I really liked it, seems to fit me as well

[DrD]

Cause I'm a big man and I need a big bike.



 

[servicerifle]

I bought a BMW because they happen to make the GS.  Had another company made the GS, I'd have bought from them instead.  

I bought a GS for the GS, not a GS for the BMW logo.

[STalker]

I bought a BMW because they happen to make the GS.  Had another company made the GS, I'd have bought from them instead.  

I bought a GS for the GS, not a GS for the BMW logo.

Werd.  

[Norwegian Blue]

I wanted a jack of all trades naked bike, and the R1150R fit the bill perfectly.

I run it naked most of the time, and it handles surprisingly well and is surprisingly fun in the West Virginia mountains.

I've put a touring windscreen and stock saddlebags on it and ridden it halfway across the country.

I've thrown my briefcase and shoes in my topbox and commuted into downtown DC (when I was commuting into downtown DC).

There just weren't any other bikes on the market that could do all of those things equally well.

[Bryan217]

Very purdy! I love the integrated bodywork, the way it all blends in. And nice color scheme too.  

[servicerifle]

Werd.  

To further wax romantic about the GS... I truly believe that it is the pinnacle of BMW's motorcycle line in the touring slant.  I've ridden all the tourers and though they're good, they all leave me yearning for my GS.  The new sport line (the 1000RR and the HP2 line) give it considerable competition on the "pinnacle of BMW" front, but don't dethrone it.  There is simply something about the GS that isn't offered in another bike in the BMW line, nor anywhere else in motorcycling, that I've found, anyway.

[ToadRide]

Why'd I buy a BMW? F800GS says it all. Love at first sight.

[Kramer]

Why'd I buy a BMW? F800GS says it all. Love at first sight.

+1

[paddy_crow]

F800ST for me. I bought it because I wanted it, plain and simple.

[OVD]

I bought my K1300S because
1) nobody else makes bikes in that segment (Busa's too sporty, Ninja 1000 was not yet available, C14, KGT, FJR, Sprint, etc. are not for me).
2) I was very impressed with my K1200R and absolutely loved it, but realized at the end that though I love performance and naked look of the R I do need more protection from the elements offered by the "S". I wish I could have both...

[valdoo]

Oh man, so many reasons...

1)  really enjoy the economic disadvantage presented by the dollar's weakness against the Euro;

2)  love the adventure of locating a target in a sparse dealer network;

3)  built a loving comraderie with the dealer (once I found one) due to all the recalls;

4)  revel in the prestiege attached to such stoopid-expensive parts and accessories;

5)  incomparable company of snooty, smug and pedantic fellow BMW owners;

6)  learning about the endless range of ridiculous farkles one can bolt on a bike;

7)  single-handedly keeping the insurance industry afloat through astronomical premiums;

8)  and, oh yeah, the RIDE.  What a ride...

 

[Robus]

The RT I bought this year was my first BMW.  It came down to a few things.  I've always admired boxers, since I first started riding Japanese bikes in the '80s.  I got tired of riding Harleys and didn't want to buy another cruiser.  I could finally afford a new beemer.

[servicerifle]

5)  incomparable company of snooty, smug and pedantic fellow BMW owners;

When listing items in a sentence, place a comma behind each item.  As in, "snooty, smug, and pedantic..."

[RBEmerson]

You're a pedantic punctuation nazi, show signs of OCD, and are a threadjacker.  

[swimmer]

When listing items in a sentence, place a comma behind each item.  As in, "snooty, smug, and pedantic..."

Shouldn't the comma be after "and"?

[servicerifle]

No.  "And" is not part of the list.  You should have learned that in second grade.

[servicerifle]

You're a pedantic punctuation nazi, show signs of OCD, and are a threadjacker.  

In other words I'm a BMW owner on a discussion forum?  

[RBEmerson]

BINGO!  

[swimmer]

No.  "And" is not part of the list.  You should have learned that in second grade.

I skipped 2nd grade and went straight to 3rd where we learned about conjunctions.

[ABStrommer]

I skipped 2nd grade and went straight to 3rd where we learned about conjunctions.

The punctuation answer seems to be ambiguous.  See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_comma

[servicerifle]

I'm not even going to check that link.  Wikipedia isn't a writing style reference.

Swimmer, ""And" is not part of the list; you should have learned that in second grade." Better?    See, this is a BMW conversation.

[valdoo]

When listing items in a sentence, place a comma behind each item.  As in, "snooty, smug, and pedantic..."

Q.E.D.

[Lawn Dart]

Somewhere around 1985 I remember a CYCLE magazine that had the BMW K100RS and the Katana 1100 on the cover.  It was a helocopter shot, looking down on top of two riders on two very different bikes.  I was utterly fascinated with BMW the moment I saw the cover and flipped to the write up.  

There was something about the K-bike.  It's Battleship lines, the pearlescant white color, the k-brick four.  I fell in love instantly in spite of never having ridden a bike.  Ever.

I was maybe 16 or 17 at the time and I vowed that one day I would own that bike.

About the time I turned 30 or so I made the decision to buy that bike.  I found a used bike with about 52,000 miles on the odo for $2,900.  Over the next three years I put 30,000 miles on that bike.  I learned to do my first spline lube on that bike...my first valve job...my first of many, many motorcycle repairs.  

My first date on it was with the woman who was to become my wife many moons later.

It was my first real bike.  It was big, it was heavy, and it sure as heck wasn't a good learning bike.  But it fell over well and it took my learning abuse well.  I loved that bike, but ultimatley it needed to move on.  

I parted it out for $6,000.  

The bike that replaced it was a ZX11.  I never loved that bike.  Never could, never would, never desired to the way I did that K100.

When I replaced the ZX11, I knew where I was going.  BMW.  I never looked back.  I bought a 1995 Dakar Yellow R1100RSL.  I loved that bike and still miss it to this day.  What a magnificent machine and one that brought my wife and I on many a fabulous adventure.

Today, the garage houses a Yellow R1200GS and a Bumblebee K1200S.  

Why did I buy a BMW?  

Because it resonates with me.  Something about the bike, the design, the way it fits, the power and delivery just matches me exactly.

Japan has never come out with anything that even remotely matches the connected feeling I get on the BMW.  It's not that the J4 machines are bad or lacking (they aren't).  It's just that I don't go out in the garage and stare longingly at other bikes.

I look at the BMW's in the garage and I can sit there for hours, staring into the adventures yet to be written contained in each tank of fuel.

[notarian]

I didn't, haven't and maybe never will. Just the way it is.

However, the RR1000S is a potential buy.  

[Hickey]

I wanted something with upright ergos, decent wind protection, and relatively light weight that could still be sporty on a nice curvy road.  This lead me to adventure touring bikes, but I'm not particularly tall or long legged.  I tried to test ride as many variants as I could and began eliminating them for one reason or another.  Too tall, too heavy, too much vibration, uncomfortable seat, poor luggage choices, poor airflow, etc.  Then I tried the GS1200, figuring ahead of time that I would eliminate it too for price and general weirdness if nothing else.  

As it turned out, I loved it.   http://www.sport-touring.net/forums/index.php/topic,39722.0.html

Being a BMW was actually a point against it.  There are no dealers in my town and I hate to travel far for warrantee work.  Also the bikes are expensive.  I've never had any particular affinity for the brand, so those marks against it were serious.  But I really liked it, enough to overlook the brand/dealer shortcomings.  

[MonkeyNuke]

I once owned a 2000 Ducati ST4 and had it for about 7 years.  Absolutely loved the bike.  Even when its technology was dated, I always looked twice at it whenever I walked passed it.  Everything about it was perfect...except dealerships kept closing down.  The last time I had it serviced (and it was expensive) Dealer was over 70 miles away.  I got tired of chasing down a good dealer and paying top price for service.  
So, I sold it over EBay and the buyer got a great deal.  I then searched for the perfect bike in 2007.  Nothing appealed to me except the Triumph Sprint ST.  Problem was dealer location.  I found a slightly used 06 Honda VFR for sale.  Only 73 miles.  Dealer locations are not a problem with Honda.  I liked the bike, but wasn't in love with it either.  It ran perfectly, had decent power, was an excellant sport tourer, but didn't really ever look at it twice.  I owned this bike for about 3 years and put on about 16 or 17 thousand miles on it.  In 2009, I noticed the BMW K1300S on the internet.  Very nice looking bike.  Stunning power.  Lots of other nice things that the Honda didn't have.  And a reputable dealer about 40 miles away.  I never thought I would buy a BMW.  I always thought of BMW's as snobby and pretentious.  (expensive comes to mind).  It has it faults too.  Unfortunately, it suffers the occasional stalling issue.  The saddle bags are not painted and the BMW tail bag that I bought is nowhere close to waterproof.  But I love the heated grips, power, breaking, ABS, adjustable suspension, traction control, comfort, shaft drive,the color.  Most of all, I like the style the best and it fits me good.  Plus I told my spouse that the bike is a keeper.

[the drummer]

98' K1200RS  It does everything I ask of it.  It's not a "crotch rocket" damn it! It's a Cruise Missile!!

[chomy]

 2002, R1150RS, bought in 02 and still in my garage, why, because I still get a big smile when I ride it and it's good to go to the corner store or across the country at any time.

[Geoff]

I bought a BMW so I could post in this thread. 

[ConPilot1]

I bought a BMW so I could post in this thread. 

gorgeous oldie man, what year? love the color. I like the styling of some of the older Beemers.

[WBill]

Everybody should have owned at least one BMW and one Harley.  WBill

[Oilhed]

Everybody should have owned at least one BMW and one Harley.  WBill

and one Guzzi and one Ducati!

[RBEmerson]

I bought a BMW so I could post in this thread. 

Nice!!!  Owning a K1200RS, it's particularly helpful to get a sense of the styling leading up to my ride.  

[eng943]

Simply stated, I bought a BMW because nobody else makes anything that compares.

I really like Duolever suspension vs. conventional forks. I also love having electronic suspension, factory cruise, etc. Not to mention that the RT and GT have better ergos, wind management, and lighter weight than the FJR, C14, ST13.

When someone builds something comperable I'll give it a good look.  

[jsanford]

F800ST for me. I bought it because I wanted it, plain and simple.

Okay, I'm boring but +1.  I've bought two Italian bikes since, but this is the one I take out most this time of year.

(I'm not getting a Harley)

[burnergold2B]

Hubert Auriel, plain and simple. He made me do it. I was a dirt bikin grommit fondling dirty magazines with pics of dirty bikers in the woods, on the jumps, in the trails, and of course the P-D. His win in 1980 cinched it for 16 years when I could afford my first GS.